Varsity rankings slip

SOUTH African universities are continuing to slip down the world rankings.

The Times Higher Education this week published the 13th edition of its “World University Rankings”.

Eight South African universities appeared on the rankings, including two new entrants.

These were the University of Johannesburg (UJ) and the University of the Western Cape (UWC), which both ranked in the 601-800 band.

In addition, the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) rose from the 201-250 band to 182nd place.

But the rest of the universities on the rankings dropped compared with last year.

The University of Cape Town (UCT) remained in the top 200 but dropped from 120th place to 148th place.

Stellenbosch University (SU) dropped from the 301-350 band to the 401-500 band.

The University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN) dropped from the 401-500 band to the 501-600 band.

The University of Pretoria (UP) dropped from the 501-600 band to the 601-800 band.

The University of South Africa (Unisa) dropped from the 601-800 band to the 801+ band.

The editor of the “World University Rankings” Phil Baty said SU, UKZN, UP and Unisa lost ground largely because of lower scores for reputation. And protest action was a factor. “With rising inflation coupled with tuition fee increases being cancelled following nationwide protests, university budgets are at breaking point,” he said.